I'm Weak; Are you?

Referenced Scriptures:  2 Cor 12:9, Phil 4:7, Mark 7:13

 "My grace is sufficient for you, for my power is made perfect in weakness.” Therefore I will boast all the more gladly about my weaknesses, so that Christ’s power may rest on me." (2 Cor 12:9)

This scripture has always been such a source of hope to me. Paul is laying it all out here and I can almost see the brokenness that he had while he penned these words. You can conclude that Paul was fully aware of his weaknesses and that in those same weaknesses he saw the amazing power of God in all its splendor. 

Many of you know that my older brother went home to be with the Lord in 2010. During this time I really had the chance to experience the depths of my own weaknesses. There were many well-meaning believers that attempted to encourage and console in various ways and one of the “encouragements” that just didn’t help (or did it?) was when I would be told, “Just be strong.” I recall just losing it one day with God in prayer and saying, “Be strong, REALLY!? How do I do that?!” I was at a point where the events going on right in front of me couldn’t be just nicely tucked away and dealt with later. At the height of this cry to the Lord I was lead to 2 Corinthians12:9 once I read these words that peace that passes all understanding began to stir inside of me (see Phil 4:7). I continued on and the  prayer went like this, “Lord, please help me, I can’t handle this anymore. I don't know how to BE STRONG when all I feel is weak…” the response I received floored me He said, “I never asked you to be strong in this specific situation, others did. I have always asked that you come to me with all your cares. I know you can’t handle this and now that you understand you can’t handle this; can you please let me carry you through this?” 

You see God showed me something life-changing that day; there are times we do need to be strong in the Lord and stand firm, not waver, and be militant soldiers of the Kingdom. On the other hand there are also times where brokenness is beautiful. Some of the most intimate and precious moments that I’ve ever had with the Lord where alone, locked in my room, and completely broken in my weakness before God in prayer.  These moments don’t come by being strong they come by being completely transparent with yourself and with God. Allow yourself to just talk with God. We tend to get all caught up on religious traditions (see Mark 7:13) that we forget to just talk to God. Get alone with God and pour yourself out to Him. You may feel like you are being weak but it’s in these times that God’s power can be seeing so vividly and so perfect.

Take Care & God Bless,

-E

Your Will

Referenced Scriptures: Luke 22:42 (NLT), Deuteronomy 31:6 (NKJV), John 16:33 (NLT), Romans 8:28 (NLT)

“Father, if you are willing, please take this cup of suffering away from me. Yet I want your will to be done, not mine.” (Luke 22:42 NLT)

I absolutely LOVE this passage of scripture. Jesus is described to be in prayer; however, his prayer is not very typical to our own prayers. I believe at this point Jesus knew what was coming and He asked the the Father to remove this cup from him (take it away). He ends his request with the words we always center on yet its a point where we often fall short; myself included. "I want your will to be done, not mine."

I can't count how many times I've prayed and asked God to remove a hardship out of my life. We tend to become so acquainted with comfort and security that we believe hardship is associated with God forsaking us. This is just not the case. God's word clearly states that He will never leave us or forsake us (see Deuteronomy 31:6). It also states that we will have trials and sorrow here on earth (see John 16:33) but this same verse also assures us that Jesus has overcome the world and because of that we can have peace. We are going to go through things but all things do work together for good (see Romans 8:28) although we don't always see "the good" right away.

I've come to realize that a more appropriate prayer goes more like this, "Lord, I don't know why I am gong through this but I know there is something I can learn from it. If You want me to go through this I can accept that just give me the strength to walk this path with You." He is faithful to His word and His promises. Believe it or not He really does know what is best for us. So just trust that although you may be in a battle, the war has already been won.

Take care and God bless,

-E

Are You A Stumbling Block?

Referenced Scriptures: 1 Cor. 8:9, Romans 14:13

"I'm not hurting anyone!" I've often made this statement while foolishly attempting to justify my actions. I think we've all said it at one time or another. I had soon come to find out that my actions do in fact impact everyone around me. Recently in revisiting this topic I found it very interesting that Paul instructed both the Corinthians and Romans of the importance of their actions in each of the letters he wrote to them (1 Corinthians 8:9 & Romans 14:13).

So how can my actions hurt someone else? There are many ways a few examples may include, my words, my attitude, how I drive, my work ethic, etc. As you can see all these areas if not handled correctly can either help others or hurt others. Let's say I choose to cut someone off in traffic and stare them down; how does this show them the love of Christ? On the other hand, let's say I choose to allow someone into my lane in traffic; did you ever think that maybe that person has just had a horrible day and that small act of kindness just gave them a glimmer of hope.

Depending on who is around fellow believers or a non-believer every one of our actions hold significant amount of weight. To a non-believer our negative actions (as believers) can push them away from God and that is why you hear the world label many Christians as hypocrites. To a Believer in Christ, our actions can be the difference of them getting closer to Jesus or falling into temptation and potentially sin. A couple of specifics that constantly seem to come up are really gender-based.

With Men what I see a lot is the need to fit in with the other guys at work and participate in all the racy and off-color comments and jokes. Now if a Christian man indulges in this and participates in it; how does this help advance the Kingdom of God? What does this show the non-believers about you being a professing Christian? Better yet what does it show to the other Believer that you didn't even know was there and has been watching you and knows you are a professing to be a follower of Christ?

 

With women, the predominant one that is consistently out there is how they choose to dress. Tight, low-cut and revealing clothing can trigger a plethora of impure thoughts in most red-blooded American men Christian or not. Men are very visual and because of this women, especially Christian women, need to be sure they are not presenting themselves as a source that could potentially cause a fellow brother in Christ to have impure thoughts. A scenario on this one is very similar as the one above. Let's say you are a professing Christian young lady and you decide to wear a low-cut top and go to the store and your Pastor sees you in it; do you realize the potentially dangerous visual image you are leaving? Same scenario, you wear a low-cut top to the store and a non-believing man sees you that knows you are a Christian; what does this do to their perception of the integrity of Christian woman? How does this change their perspective of you?

Our actions and how we present ourselves as followers of Christ have an eternal impact to a world all around us that needs Jesus. So we, as His followers, need to consciously make decisions and choices of integrity. It's sometimes hard to believe that just going along with the crowd poking fun at one of the "different" co-workers at work could really matter but it does. So yes, I was convicted in this area and I have repented and made the decision not to participate I these type of things no matter how harmless they may seem.

Someone is always watching you; what will you let them see?

Take Care & God Bless,

-E

 

Wants vs Needs

"And my God will supply every need of yours according to his riches in glory in Christ Jesus." (Philippians 4:19 ESV)

Referenced Scripture: Philippians 4:19, Psalm 37:25

I recently was talking with a fellow Believer and noticed something very interesting that I too had found myself experiencing at one time in my life. The conversation was just your basic update on things nothing too deep but in that there is much you can capture if you listen. You could just hear the discontentment in their voice and how they wanted something different then the hand they had been dealt. Now don't get me wrong striving for something better is a good thing and even healthy to an extent. But when you begin complaining and murmuring more than you are thanking God for what you do have there may be a need to readjustment in your perspective.

The biggest one I hear is, "my job ________" (fill in the blank). I hear so many saying how miserable their job is or how bad life has become because of their job yet we fail to realize our needs are in fact being met just as God has promised to do for His people (see Psalm 37:25 & Philippians 4:19). I mean you look like you are eating well, most of us have a place to call a home and yes at least you do have a job. Our western culture has become so materialistic that if we don't have the latest and greatest handbag, gadget or respected and well-paid career then we see ourselves as the outcast of society. We tend to judge success or fulfillment by how easily things are obtained and if things aren't coming easy then God must be taking us through a valley. 

I have found myself in these so called "valleys" one time or another my own life. It would usually happen when I shifted my focus off of God and onto what others around me had or were doing. Then one day God very plainly spoke to me as I read through Philippians 4 verse 19 He said, "you see I am meeting your needs; you just have your wants confused with your needs." It was truly eye-opening and 100% true. I had become so focused on what I didn't have I began to completely overlook all that God was providing for me on a daily basis.

We can all end up here from time to time and honestly it just takes a shift in your perspective to see where we need to make some adjustments. First step is to see that there is an issue and get it right. My prayer went a bit like this, "God, I know you have provided so much for me and I am sorry for taking it for granted and taking my eyes off  of You. Truly You have had Your hand in my life and I can't being to thank You enough. Help me to see all that You provide for me every single day." Begin to look for the areas where God is consistently meeting your needs and don't get  your wants confused with your needs. When you break it down we as human beings have only a handful of life-sustaining actual needs everything else is just stuff we want.

Take Care & God Bless,

-E

Saturday

But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. (Isaiah 53:5 NIV)

Saturday...think about it; No, really stop and think about this. Think about what today was like for the disciples of Jesus. Or think about how Mary felt after witnessing what was done to her son just a few short hours ago. Any of us who have been through the valley of a loved one passing on know all about how "the day after" feels. Numbness, disbelief and a sense of "am I dreaming...this can't be real." No one not one of us have ever had to witness anything close to what Jesus went through.

I'm sure all these emotions were running rampant in the minds of all who loved Jesus and I can't even imagine witnessing first hand what He endured. Do you know He did that for you? When you hear that statement; do you even grasp the magnitude of what that means? Do you even feel anything? Because I guarantee you this He felt everything.

You see Easter is not about marshmallow birds, chocolate bunnies and eggs although there's not anything wrong with that (except those peeps, yuck). However, in the midst of the traditions let us not forget to stop and really take inventory of what it all really means and the price that was paid for mankind. Whether you except or reject it; a man sent by God (his Son), named Jesus, did die for our sins and thank God that this story didn't end on Saturday.

 The below song "What Love is This" is from the new Kari Jobe Album ("Where I Find You") and I truly believe it says it all so perfectly beautiful.

Take care & God bless,

-E

Artist: Kari Jobe

Track: What Love is This

Album: Where I Find You

A Sinful Woman Forgiven

 Referenced Scriptures: Luke 7:36-50

So it's been a while, but God has had me in a few different areas. Today, I was led to Luke 7:36-50. Where Jesus is eating with a Pharisee and a "sinful woman" comes in and begins showing her love and appreciation for Jesus by washing his feet with her tears and drying them with her hair. The story goes that this Pharisee (religious person) invited Jesus over to have a meal with him and this woman shows up and just begins showing her love for Jesus. The Pharisee then thinks to himself in verse 30, “If this man were a prophet, he would have known who and what sort of woman this is who is touching him, for she is a sinner.” Jesus then proceeds to tell a story of two men one of these men owed let's say, $500 the other owed $50. Neither of these men could repay this debt so the moneylender cancelled both of their debts. At the end of this parable Jesus asks the Pharisee, "Now which of them will love him more?”

I have read this account of Jesus' life many times but today it really struck a nerve. How often have I been this Pharisee? Very often is the answer I get back when I answer that question honestly. The church and Christians in general tend to get "religious" as we mature in our faith. This is good and bad; let me explain. This is good because as a follower of Christ we should be moving forward in our knowledge and understanding of God's kingdom; however, we should not be looking down or turning our noses at anyone that may not be where we are. I have caught myself being hard on people when I have absolutely no right to do this. Saying things internally like, "Why can't they just get past this and move on?" I expect that their walk with Christ should mirror mine and is just not how things work. We tend to write off people just because they are not where "we think" they need to be. Quite honestly this "holier than thou" religiosity is what the world sees in the church when what they should be seeing is Christ.

Let's stop judging others and begin to pray for those we see that may be coming up behind us. Their walk with Christ is just that "their walk" and it more than likely was custom-built just for them. So they will go through things that we didn't have to, some things will come harder and easier to them, but our walks will not be identical. So just pray; pray for them and don't gossip or have a bad attitude toward them and God will take care of the rest. It's not our job to change people; we can't, that responsibility belongs to the only one that can...Jesus Christ. 

Take Care & God Bless,

-E